SIDNEY — SCARF (Shelby County Animal Rescue Foundation) celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2022. Over the past 10 years, SCARF has raised funds to support the building of the new shelter and has instituted numerous programs to support the animals at the Bob Sargeant & Family Shelby County Animal Shelter.
SCARF’s mission is to raise funds to support the Shelby County Animal Shelter in safe adoptions, education & community outreach concerning abused and neglected animals, medical procedures, eliminating euthanasia of adoptable animals, and maintaining best practices.
President Julie Ehemann has submitted the following report:
Through the work of SCARF and our generous donors, SCARF contributed over $3,800 for immunizations, $20,247 for vet care, and $4,445 for TNR services and facilitated the collection of donations consisting of food, blankets, treats, toys, cleaning supplies, etc. in 2022.
SCARF is pleased to serve the community in finding lost pets through its FACEBOOK page, sometimes within minutes! SCARF also assisted people in finding adoptable pets via support of the Animal Shelter’s adoption process and adoption drives including Fur-tastic Friday’s held monthly. The Shelby County Animal Shelter continues to have over 94% of dogs coming into the shelter adopted or re-united with their owners. Other dogs were transferred to rescue centers throughout the United States or remain waiting for adoption.
SCARF volunteers held ongoing fundraisers including the Walk to End Parvo, its bi-monthly Cans for Canines and Felines aluminum can collection and Dimes for Dogs and Cats with over thirty local businesses hosting SCARF’s doghouse banks. A popular fundraiser, our Top Pet Calendar Contest, was done with local law enforcement posing with our top pets at the beautiful Tawawa Park. The Top Pet was named with Nala owned by Kenna Armstrong bringing in more votes than the other twenty-seven entries raising over $5000 for vet care! SCARF held a “Night Out” at The Palazzo in November to celebrate out Tenth Anniversary. Comedians from Wiley’s Comedy Club entertained our guests with funds raised ($11,147) supporting the Animal Shelter’s Spay/Neuter Program.
The Shelby County Animal Shelter and SCARF, along with support from the City of Sidney continued a TNR (trap-neuter-return) program using volunteers to trap feral cats at pre-determined locations with a mobile Veterinarian unit utilized to perform spay and neuter procedures. Cats are also given rabies vaccinations and health exams before being returned to their neighborhoods. Twelve clinics were scheduled in 2022 resulting in the seizure of 261 cats to be altered. Since its inception seven years ago, the TNR program has resulted in1, 434 cats being spayed, neutered, or euthanized within the County.
Working with The Community Foundation of Shelby County, SCARF set up a new fund in 2021 which will allow our donors more options in meeting their charitable goals. The formation of this fund also made SCARF an eligible participant in the Foundation’s Match Day Program. Donations from Match Day exceeded $43,000 and will be used to fund a new dog run and exercise area at the Bob Sargeant & Family Shelby County Animal Shelter.
One of SCARF’s continuing goals is to expand our educational program called PEP! (Pet Education Project). The PEP! Curriculum works to help kids learn the proper way to care for animals with the tag-line “Be Cool, Not Cruel.” We urge you to reach out to us if you are able to support this portion of our mission.
The SCARF volunteers are extremely grateful for the community’s continued support, and we are always looking for new volunteers to join our team. Please “like” our FACEBOOK page so you can follow our activities and find out how you can help at www.helpshelbycountyanimals.com.
